Machines such as scrapers, wheel loaders, wheel dozers, motor graders, and wheeled excavators are each equipped with fenders that block mud and debris sprayed by the machine's wheels from contacting critical portions of the associated machine. Conventional fenders are fabricated from steel or iron plates and include multiple straight portions that are folded or welded together around a portion of a machine's wheel to form an enclosure that contains the mud and debris during operation. Although effective, these types of fenders can be heavy and tend to collect mud in pockets at the folded or welded areas. The collected mud further increases the weight of the fenders and, in some applications, the combined weight of the fender and accumulated mud can be sufficient to cause the fender to crack or fail completely.
One attempt to improve fender longevity is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,893,048 of Rush et al. that issued on May 17, 2005 (the '048 patent). In particular, the '048 patent discloses a blow-molded hollow fender made from a high-density polyethylene plastic material. An inner surface of the fender includes slots that receive a corresponding rod. Clamps are bolted to bosses formed on the inner surface of the fender and clamp the rod to the fender. The rod is bent to form three sections, which are attached to the fender so that the fender will not rotate with respect to the rod.
Although the fender of the '048 patent may provide some longevity improvement over conventional fenders through the use of a lighter polyethylene material, it may still be problematic. In particular, the clamps used to connect the rod to the fender may not have sufficient durability for some applications. In addition, the fender may provide no protection from debris thrown axially inward toward the machine by wheels of the machine and too little radial protection. Further, the inner surface of the fender may provide many opportunities for mud collection that can weigh down the fender and increase the likelihood of failure. Finally, the fender of the '048 patent may be not be rigid enough for some applications.
The disclosed fender assembly is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above and/or other problems of the prior art.